Latest News On Legalizing Online Poker
A long and weary battle over the legalization of online gambling in Washington State appears to be drawing to a conclusion. One of the only states to prohibit all types of unregulated online gambling, Washington State has been under a lot of pressure to change the system to allow online poker to go ahead.
New York online poker FAQ Why is New York considering legalizing online poker? Millions of New Yorkers play on unregulated online poker sites that operate without basic consumer protections. Legalization of the game will provide a safe environment for players while generating significant revenue for state coffers. Regulated U.S. Online Poker. The bulk of our coverage is focused on the markets for regulated, legal, online poker in New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, along with other states in the U.S., including New York and Michigan that are considering regulated online poker. Legal online poker in Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is the fourth US state to legalize online poker. Both the Senate and House passed a bill to regulate not only online poker, but also online casino games including table games and online slots, as well as daily fantasy sports, and sports betting now that PASPA has been repealed by the Supreme Court. Washington State to Consider Legalizing Online Poker in 2018 Toby Scott, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License A long and weary battle over the legalization of online gambling in Washington State appears to be drawing to a conclusion.
Currently, if you are caught playing online poker in Washington State, the consequences can range from a misdemeanour, gross misdemeanour, or felony. Being charged with a felony could result in a $10,000 fine and/or up to 5 years in prison. But now it appears that Washington State has had a change of heart and is open to the notion of reducing or eliminating these penalties.
Though this is not the first time that the state has been approached to consider introducing new laws permitting online gambling, it is the first time that a good result for the poker community seems promising. A huge light was shone on the state’s draconian laws against online gambling in the appeal case of Rousso v. Washington State. Backed by the Poker Players Alliance, poker player and lawyer Lee Rousso argued in the Supreme Court that the laws against online poker were a violation of the commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits states from passing legislation that discriminates against interstate commerce. At that time, the Supreme Court upheld the state law, while making it clear that although the court did not necessarily endorse the law, it had to endorse the right of the legislature to pass the law.
Following on from this court case, House Bill 1824 was introduced in February 2013 which called for a reduction in penalties for recreational online poker, bringing it down from a Class C felony to a Class 3 civil infraction with a $50 fine. This bill failed to advance and nothing more was heard until a further House Bill (1114) was put forward in January 2015 with the intention of legalizing online poker, however, this bill was not heard due to a lack of support.
House Bill 1114 was re-introduced one year later, though it suffered a similar fate as its predecessors and failed to advance. It appeared that the legalization of online gambling in Washington State was just not meant to be, and that any further attempts would be a seriously long shot. To everyone’s surprise, however, following a Senate Committee meeting in January 2017, it was proposed that the bill be re-introduced. Could Washington State finally be ready to proceed with the legalization of online gambling?
They would be right to at least consider the possibility. A report by the Spectrum Gaming Group predicted that the legalization of online gambling would see gambling revenues grow 37% by 2020, while the regulation of online gambling would bring an additional $100 million to the state each year. The report, covering 173 pages, details that online gambling could be a huge source of income for the state due to the increase in use of mobile technology. Comparing the state to New Jersey, where residents have been able to legally play 888 poker games online since 2011, Spectrum noted that both states have similar demographics which could dictate a growth in income similar to that of New Jersey. It is also noted that online gambling is not a threat to physical casinos, who are concerned that their businesses will suffer with the introduction of another source of gaming. Spectrum were keen to point out that no such issue had occurred in New Jersey and that online gambling will pose no threat to existing businesses.
So, are Washington State likely to follow suit? It is looking very likely that the laws could change as early as 2018. Watch this space.
It appears the last-ditch effort of Australians to fight for legal online poker has fallen short.
The Australian Senate passed the Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill 2016 on Wednesday, effectively fencing the country in from regulated operators of online poker. The bill was initially meant to close off loopholes that allowed in play sports betting but also has the side effect of making it impossible for regulated online poker to be offered.
The passage comes on the heels of a final push from online poker players and advocates, led by the Australian Online Poker Alliance and Australian Sen. David Leyonhjelm.
After the bill's initial movement late in 2016, things looked grim for online poker Down Under. However, the AOPA formed in response to the bill and Leyonhjelm took up the cause, initiating an inquiry to highlight what he and others saw as a foolish and hypocritical law.
Poker players responded and the group presented their case before at an Aug. 1 hearing. Joseph Del Duca of the AOPA said the support was all he could have hoped for.
'The Australian poker community should be very proud of how they have held themselves through the campaign,' he said. 'We have rallied together as a strong community. The inquiry has received so many submissions from people who want to save our game that they haven't been able to keep up with the work load.'
The band also recruited a pair of expert witnesses who pushed the idea of regulation rather than prohibition. Dr. Sally Gainsbury, a university professor, pointed out that black market sides exist that will swoop into the vacuum in the market and cater to Australians.
'A lot of people will continue to play, and they will be forced to use sites that potentially have fewer consumer protection mechanisms and be exposed to risks related to developing gambling problems, as well as potentially being cheated or losing their funds,' she said.
Longtime Australian online poker player Oliver Gill, a key voice in the AOPA, also called into the meeting to voice his support for a regulated market.
'Prohibition has been tried in other countries with disastrous results, including the creation of black markets, with millions of dollars being stolen from players by illegal online poker operators like Lock Poker with no recourse for players who have been cheated or stolen from,' he said. 'I do not believe it's in any party's best interest to subject Australian online poker players to the reality of black markets, if the online poker industry is banned in Australia.'
Latest News On Legalizing Online Poker Games
In opposition, representatives of the Salvation Army voiced concerns about expansion of gambling in Australia. They argued the ease of access to online poker via credit cards and PayPal as 'the preferred method' of gambling made it a haven for problem gamblers. Choctaw casino entertainment durant ok.
A number of highly placed government workers also took the stand. In their interview, they admitted that online poker was a different beast from other forms of internet gambling.
'That would still be the department's view, that if any of the games under the IGA were allowed it probably would be online poker,' said Andrew Verdon, assistant director of online gambling in the Department of Communications and the Arts.
'We do acknowledge that online poker is a mix of skill and chance. There is a lot of skill involved, but there is still that chance element. But it would not be in the same area as roulette and slot machines, which is pure chance.'
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However, the efforts of the pro-poker community appear to have done nothing to slow the guillotine from dropping. It took a merely a little over a week for the Australian Senate to come to a decision, and the decision means regulated online poker is likely finished in Australia. That means the 130,000 or so who play online Down Under face the undesirable choice between hanging up their mouse and keyboard or hopping into the murky waters that are home to black market operators.
While things are looking more grim than ever before for Australian poker players, Del Duca urged players and supporter to keep up the fight.
'Whilst it was unfortunate that the government did not wait for the Senate Inquiry findings to come through, we urge Australian poker players to not give up hope,' he said. 'Our game is not dead and we will continue to campaign for safe, legal online poker when the Senate Inquiry is handed down.
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'Our call for a safe, regulated online poker market in Australia is still the only option that provides freedom for players, revenue for the government and protection for those in need.'
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